


The B Team

by lachatblanche



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies), X-Men (Movies), X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014) - Fandom, X-Men: First Class (2011) - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Fusion, Alternate Universe - Still Have Powers, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-22
Updated: 2015-05-22
Packaged: 2018-03-31 15:54:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,098
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3983956
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lachatblanche/pseuds/lachatblanche
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which Charles and Logan are SHIELD agents who are present at the Battle of New York.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The B Team

**Author's Note:**

  * In response to a prompt by Anonymous in the [XavierineFest2015](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/XavierineFest2015) collection. 



> **Prompt:**
> 
>  
> 
> Charles and Logan as SHIELD agents, being badasses

‘Bet you’re regretting getting us into this now, huh?’

Charles cast a mournful glance at the remnants of what had only mere hours ago been downtown New York. ‘What made you think that?’ he asked, looking around despondently at the mounds of rubble and shattered glass surrounding them.

Logan shrugged. ‘Maybe the fact that we got stuck being the goddamn clean-up crew instead of the ones bringing down all the buildings?’ he drawled, before abruptly sticking out one clawed hand and easily shredding through the stray chitauri fighter that had tried to get past him. 

Charles considered that for a moment. ‘Yes,’ he admitted after a minute, ‘that’s actually rather accurate.’ He then raised a hand to his temple, all the while projecting an air of muted exasperation. _Please exit the building as quickly as possible, there’s a lad, you don’t want the whole thing to come down on top of you – **yes** , I **am** in your head, now move along …_ He sighed and lowered his arm. ‘You would think that people would have the sense to see that one lone desk is not going to stop a whole building from falling on top of them, wouldn’t you?’ he said irritably. ‘But no – everyone apparently seems to think that hiding under a desk is the only logical solution to having an alien invasion and a hulk-sized hole in the wall.’

Logan cocked his head to the side. ‘How many is it that you’ve had to drag out now?’ he asked in idle curiosity.

‘About sixteen so far,’ Charles said, shaking his head ruefully. ‘I must say that their faith in the table-making industry is almost laudable.’

‘Yeah,’ Logan agreed, his eyes fixed steadily on a point somewhere above them. ‘It’s real inspiring. ‘Scuse us a minute, Chuck,’ and then he flung himself upwards, claws unsheathed, hurling himself towards the oncoming chitauri racing towards him while Charles watched patiently from below.

‘Need any help?’ Charles called half-heartedly as Logan set about shredding and dismantling everything within reach. 

‘You concentrate on getting those assholes out from under their tables,’ Logan grunted, slashing happily at a screeching chitauri’s midsection and watching in satisfaction as it collapsed with a howl. ‘I’ll deal with the grown-up stuff.’

‘Bastard,’ Charles muttered sourly, before pulling out a stun gun from his thigh holster and casually zapping the chitauri who were trying to sneak past. ‘You missed a few,’ he called cheerfully as Logan finally finished tussling with chitauri clinging to his neck and flung it aside with a growl.

‘Yeah, yeah,’ he muttered, stalking back to Charles’s side. ‘I had it covered.’ He gave Charles a sideways look. ‘You might wanna get hold of those morons back in the thick of things, though – they’re doing a lousy job of keeping these ugly bastards locked in.’

‘Right you are,’ Charles agreed, lifting a finger to his head and concentrating. _Captain, it’s Charles here. Delighted to see you again, as always._

 _Always glad to have you aboard, Charles_ , came Rogers’s strained tone. _What can I do for you?_

_I thought that you ought to know that it would be immensely appreciated if you could rope the chitauri in tighter. We’re taking care of the perimeter, but we can’t be everywhere at once._

_Roger that_ , was Steve’s short reply. _Gotta go now, Charles, there’s a – what the **hell**?_

Charles disengaged from his mind just in time to see Logan throw himself over him, protecting him from a sudden hailstorm of rock crashing down their way.

‘Oh,’ Charles blinked dazedly and looked up at Logan, who was hovering protectively over him. He smiled. ‘My hero.’

Logan let out a snort and pushed away before holding out a hand to pull Charles up, even as the cuts and bruises from the falling debris faded away from his skin. ‘Don’t get me wrong, Chuck, you’re pretty and all that, but you ain’t exactly my idea of a damsel in distress.’

‘You sweet-talker you,’ Charles murmured, squinting around at the dust-filled air and raising a hand to cover his nose and mouth.

‘What the hell was that anyway?’ Logan asked grimly, looking around them.

‘A space-monster from hell, apparently,’ Charles said dryly, remembering what he had seen in Steve’s mind. He shook his head when Logan turned to him with a frown. ‘Don’t ask. We’ll keep dealing with the chitauri – let the Avengers focus on _that_.’

Logan scowled. ‘See,’ he said irritably. ‘This is what I mean. _They_ get the fucking space-monsters and we get the goddamn goons on hover bikes.’

Charles frowned. ‘And what – you’re jealous of that?’ He waited patiently as Logan abruptly sped off, watching as he threw himself onto a group of oncoming chitauri. ‘You don’t think that we do enough in SHIELD?’ he asked when Logan strode back towards him. ‘Would you rather not have joined up with me?’

Logan stared at him for a moment, uncomprehending, before letting out a sigh. ‘You’re twisting things,’ he said, reaching into his pocket for a cigar. ‘That’s not what I meant.’

Charles cocked an eyebrow. ‘Oh really?’

Logan shook his head. ‘I’m just saying,’ he bit the end of his cigar between his teeth and brought the matchstick up to light it. ‘We probably should have held out a little longer before giving in. We could’ve waited a while. Considered our options some. We didn’t have to say yes to SHIELD straight away.’

‘And what exactly would have been the point of that?’ Charles asked impatiently.

‘You know it as well as I do, Chuck,’ Logan shrugged, unrepentant. ‘If we hadn’t said yes to joining the fucking B team the moment they asked us to then we’d probably have made the cut for the A team, no problem.’ 

Charles sighed. ‘There’s no _B_ team, Logan,’ he said, sounding exasperated. ‘That’s not how this works. We do important work here, in case you’re forgetting. _SHIELD_ does important work. Don’t pretend that you don’t know that. Besides,’ he added, a little reluctantly. ‘You can’t say for certain that we would have been invited to join the Avengers if we’d turned SHIELD down. I’m sure there’s a long and arduous screening process involved, and background checks and tests and—’

‘Stop kidding yourself, Chuck,’ Logan scoffed. ‘There’s no screening process.’

‘You can’t be—’

‘They let that asshole Stark onto the team,’ Logan said flatly, and watched in satisfaction as Charles let out a grimace. ‘There’s no way that _that_ asshole passed any screening process, and you know it.’

‘Oh okay, fine,’ Charles grumbled, looking thoroughly disgruntled as he shot down a chitauri fighter zooming above them. ‘So there’s no screening process. Still. It doesn’t mean that we’d have been invited.’

Logan gave him a look. ‘You’re a goddamn omega level telepath,’ he said flatly. ‘And I can take a grenade to the chest and be dancing a fucking jig two minutes later. There’s no way that the two of us don’t make the cut, Charles – we could take out the A team in our _sleep_.’

A smile tugged at the corner of Charles’s mouth. ‘We could, couldn’t we?’ he murmured, sounding pleased. 

‘Damn right we could,’ Logan said gruffly. ‘Which is probably why those assholes never asked us to join them.’

‘You really care so much about it?’ Charles asked, surprised at his tone.

Logan snorted. ‘Hell no,’ he said, taking a drag from his cigar. ‘I just don’t want to get stuck with all the bullshit clean-up jobs from here on.’

‘We’re hardly just cleaning up,’ Charles pointed out, expertly swivelling out of the way of a blast and taking down a chitauri fighter in one surprisingly graceful move. ‘And it’s not as if we’ve been stuck with the boring jobs before this.’

‘Dunno,’ Logan said grumpily, taking down a chitauri and then re-sheathing his claws. ‘Bruges was pretty damn boring.’

‘Yes well,’ Charles grimaced. ‘That’s just Bruges.’

‘Yeah,’ Logan sighed. ‘Fucking Bruges.’

‘That’s the exception, though,’ Charles said quickly. ‘You can’t say that SHIELD hasn’t been good to us. I mean, we’re fantastic agents, yes, but they’ve given us a lot of opportunities to show it as well. We’ve done a lot of good because of them, you know we have. Plus we’ve saved the world on more than one occasion – _without_ levelling New York in the process, I might add,’ he said pointedly as a chunk of building slid off just a few hundred yards away.

Logan scratched his chin. ‘You may have a point there,’ he admitted, looking slightly mollified.

‘And what about that time in Dublin?’ Charles asked winningly, smiling up at him. ‘That was rather exciting, wasn’t it?’

‘I suppose,’ Logan admitted.

‘Bern was pretty good as well.’

‘You mean with the—?’

Charles nodded.

‘Yeah, I guess that was a good one.’

‘Wasn’t it?’ Charles beamed. ‘Oh, and don’t forget Budapest. Now _that_ was fun. You can’t say you didn’t enjoy that one.’ He grinned. ‘It makes for a great conversation piece at dinner, Budapest does.’

‘Yeah, well _everyone’s_ got a Budapest these days,’ Logan said, rolling his eyes. ‘You should hear Barton go on about _his_ Budapest story. The way that asshole tells it he single-handedly took out fifty—’

‘Yes, yes, I know,’ Charles quickly interrupted him. ‘Believe me, we _all_ know what happened in Budapest.’

Logan smirked. ‘That doesn’t surprise me.’

Charles grinned but his expression quickly darkened when he saw movement from up ahead. ‘I’m sure that Budapest is going to look like a picnic after today,’ he muttered, slowly reaching towards his holster. ‘Even for Clint.’

‘I wouldn’t count on it,’ Logan scoffed, even as his eyes focused unflinchingly ahead. Leaning forward, he clenched his hands into fists, unsheathing his claws. ‘Brace yourself, Chuck,’ he said grimly. ‘We have incoming.’

‘I’m ready,’ Charles answered calmly, watching the slow approach of the chitauri foot soldiers as they came ever nearer. He glanced over at Logan and then took a deep breath and raised his chin, ready to face the oncoming onslaught. Then something caught the corner of his eye and he frowned. ‘Hold on – what’s that?’

Logan glanced up, distracted, and then paused, frowning. ‘Huh,’ he said, blinking. ‘That looks like—’

‘Is that Tony?’ Charles stared, appalled. ‘And is that a—’

‘Yup,’ Logan confirmed grimly. ‘That’s a nuke he’s carrying on his back.’ He scowled. ‘Goddamn asshole.’ 

Then he turned and, with a roar, charged forward and punched the nearest chitauri in the neck.

*****

‘Well,’ Logan said after the last chitauri had fallen and Charles had anxiously made sure that Tony had made it back in one piece, ‘That was a mess.’

‘Fury is going to have a hard time dealing with this,’ Charles agreed, wincing as he gazed around at the toppled buildings, the crushed vehicles and the scorch marks that littered the streets.

Logan snorted. ‘I dunno,’ he said. ‘I think the whole “aliens invaded New York” line might actually be pretty convincing. He ought to get a little leeway with that.’ He shrugged, looking completely unconcerned. ‘Don’t worry yourself, Chuck. Fury can handle himself.’

‘I suppose,’ Charles said, sounding a little doubtful. He then glanced around, once more looking forlorn. ‘What do you think will happen here? To New York, I mean.’

Logan shrugged. ‘Like I said,’ he answered easily. ‘Fury’ll sort it out. I’m good with whatever he decides.’ His eyes then narrowed. ‘Just so long as _I’m_ not stuck having to clean this shit up,’ he muttered.

When Charles didn’t respond, Logan turned around to look at him, only to see Charles gazing back at him with a strangely earnest expression.

‘Logan,’ Charles said quietly. ‘Do you really mean what you said about how we should have waited? Before signing up, I mean. Do you really regret becoming a SHIELD agent?’

Logan turned to look at Charles. He eyed the way Charles was biting his lip and avoiding his eyes. He sighed. ‘Nah,’ he said, pulling out another cigar and casually biting it between his teeth. ‘I was only messing with you.’ 

Charles frowned. ‘You’re sure?’ he asked dubiously. ‘You wouldn’t rather be an Avenger?’

‘Damn right I wouldn’t,’ Logan said firmly, lighting up his cigar. ‘I hate most of those assholes anyway.’

Charles’s lips twitched. ‘You like them really,’ he said, amused.

‘Cap’s not bad,’ Logan admitted. ‘And Nat’s a friend. Even Banner ain’t half bad, come to think about it. But Barton’s an asshole and Stark’s about a hundred times worse, and believe me, bub, if I was put in a room with the two of them then there’d only be one of us coming out of there, and _I’m_ the only one with a healing mutation, you get me?’

‘I get you,’ Charles’s mouth twitched. ‘You never said anything about Thor, though.’

Logan shrugged. ‘We’re pals,’ he said shortly. ‘We get beers every other week. He picks up the tab.’

Charles’s eyebrows rose. ‘That must be quite the bill you rack up at the end of the night,’ he observed.

‘Like I said,’ Logan smirked. ‘He picks up the tab.’ He shrugged. ‘No point in hanging around a demi-god if he ain’t willing to bring the beer, you know?’

‘No,’ Charles said honestly. ‘I don’t know.’

‘Huh.’ Logan eyed him. ‘Remind me to invite you along some time.’

Charles’s smile turned soft. ‘I’ll do that,’ he agreed, looking strangely fond.

Logan nodded, looking away awkwardly. Then he frowned. ‘Not him again,’ he muttered, rolling his eyes and folding his arms across his chest.

Charles’s brow furrowed. ‘Not who?’ Logan jerked his head upwards and Charles, following his line of sight, turned to where he had indicated. ‘Tony!’ he exclaimed, sounding genuinely pleased to see him. ‘We’re both so glad to see you’re well!’

‘Speak for yourself,’ Logan huffed.

They both watched as Tony came to a rather jerky stop in front of them. He stood there, hovering gently on air in what was now a rather dented and damaged Iron Man suit, before his visor flicked up. ‘Hey guys,’ he said, waving a hand. He still looked rather grey and his eyes were slightly wild, but he otherwise seemed to be alright. ‘Charlie, Wolf Man. Good to see you.’ 

Charles elbowed Logan before he could voice the growl that rose in his chest.

‘Hello Tony,’ Charles said pleasantly. ‘How’s things?’

‘Oh, not bad,’ Tony answered, shrugging. ‘I keep busy. You know how it is, zapping aliens, rerouting nuclear missiles with my bare hands, saving the world – it’s all a bit samey. What about you?’

‘The same,’ Charles smiled. ‘Well – apart from the nuclear missile part. That one’s new.’

‘Yeah,’ Tony shrugged, even as he raised his chin proudly. ‘Don’t worry, you’ll get there eventually.’ 

‘Is there a reason you’re here, Stark?’ Logan demanded, narrowing his eyes at the man in front of him. ‘Don’t you have a press conference to call or something? Or are you just here to piss us off?’

‘Hey, I am a _superhero_ ,’ Tony protested, affecting an injured tone. ‘I don’t call press conferences to announce my many, _many_ spectacular victories over the forces of evil.’ He paused. ‘If, however, they somehow manage to get hold of the story without my knowledge, then – well, there’s really nothing that I can do about that, is there?’

Logan glared at him. 

‘Besides,’ Tony continued. ‘You can pretend to hate me all you want, Wolvie, I know you love me really.’ Logan raised one single seriously unimpressed eyebrow at that. Tony sighed. ‘Well – okay, fine, _Charles_ loves me. And that one’s a fact, okay, there’s this time that we—’

‘Tony!’ Charles interrupted him, his smile becoming rather fixed. ‘You were telling us why you’re here?’

Tony blinked. ‘Oh yeah.’ He turned to Logan. ‘Remind me to tell you that story sometime, it’s a real beaut,’ he said in an undertone, before turning back to face them both. ‘Me and the guys are heading out for some shawarma,’ he announced, all but bouncing on air in his enthusiasm. ‘We wanted to know if you wanted to join.’ He turned to look from one blank face to the other. ‘I’m buying.’

Logan and Charles glanced at each other. 

‘Well, I am pretty hungry,’ Charles said slowly.

‘I could eat,’ Logan shrugged, his expression neutral.

‘Awesome,’ Tony beamed at them. ‘You’re in. This is gonna be great. All of us guys hanging out, taking down aliens, eating shawarma. This could totally be our thing.’

‘It’s a lovely idea, Tony,’ Charles smiled, gently grabbing hold of Tony’s ankle and pulling him down to the ground beside him. ‘Maybe we could leave out the aliens in the future though, yes?’

‘Leave the aliens in,’ Logan muttered as they all started to move forward. ‘I’ll be needing to punch _something_ if I have to actually spend time with this asshole.’

‘Aliens are back on the menu,’ Tony agreed quickly as they walked through the crumbling, deserted city.

‘Good,’ Logan said.

‘If it’s really necessary,’ Charles sighed.

‘Awesome.’ Tony said. Then he paused, his eyes suddenly going wide. ‘Wait,’ he announced, causing them to stop and turn towards him. ‘I’ve just had the most fantastic idea.’

Charles frowned. ‘You have?’ he asked. He sounded slightly sceptical. 

‘Oh yeah,’ Tony nodded and puffed his chest out. ‘It’s a good one. Heck, it’s awesome. It’s a little out there, I admit, but just go with me on this, okay?’

Logan and Charles eyed him warily.

‘Okay,’ Tony began. ‘So this might sound a little crazy and I know that this has probably never even occurred to you before, but …’ He took a deep breath and met their eyes. ‘Have you guys ever thought about joining the Avengers?’ He stared at them both expectantly, holding his hands out wide.

Charles and Logan exchanged a long look.

‘Never thought about it,’ Logan said shortly.

‘Not sure it’s our cup of tea,’ Charles added.

And they turned and walked away.

‘Guys!’ Tony protested from behind them. ‘Oh come on! Just hear me out!’

 _Draw it out a little this time, huh?_ Logan sent as Tony began to wax eloquent about the benefits of being part of the Avengers. _Don’t make it easy on him._

 _Oh don’t you worry_ , Charles’s smile was sly and secretive as he shared a knowing look with Logan. _By the time we’re done he’ll be offering us half of Stark Industries_. ‘Oh I don’t know,’ he said out loud as Tony continued talking. ‘Tell me again about Shawarma Thursdays.’

And they slowly walked down the streets of New York, accompanied by the sounds of Tony’s enthusiastic sales-pitch as the buildings crumbled around them.


End file.
